AWS Cloud Practitioner exam (CLF-C02) and how to pass it
The AWS Cloud Practitioner exam (CLF-C02) has 65 questions in 90 minutes, costs USD 100 and needs a scaled score of 700 to pass, as of October 2026. It tests broad cloud knowledge rather than hands-on design, coding, or operations, so it is a sensible first AWS certification when you are new to cloud or work in a non-technical role.
You do not need a prerequisite certification to take it, and AWS says that up to 6 months of AWS exposure can help but is not required. This guide explains the format, scoring, domain weights, free preparation, booking, and what to do after your result, so you can decide whether the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam fits your goal and make a practical plan to pass it.
CLF-C02 at a glance
AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner is a current foundational certification as of October 2026. It is aimed at people who need a high-level grasp of AWS Cloud, services, and terminology, including people moving into cloud and people in non-IT and line-of-business roles. It is not a claim that you can already build, operate, or troubleshoot an AWS workload.
The exam format, as of October 2026, is 65 questions in 90 minutes. It uses both multiple-choice questions, where you choose 1 answer from 4, and multiple-response questions, where you choose 2 or more answers from 5 or more. You can sit it at a Pearson VUE test centre or take an online proctored exam.
The AWS Cloud Practitioner exam price is USD 100 as of October 2026, plus applicable tax. In India, AWS lists a foundational exam at ₹8,553 as of October 2026; INR is accepted only through the Pearson Mindhub voucher store. For the wider fee and voucher picture, see the AWS certification cost guide and the AWS testing policy.
The certification is valid for 3 years. You can renew by passing the current CLF-C02, an Associate or Professional AWS exam, or Cloud Quest: Recertify, rather than assuming that one pass lasts for your whole career.
How the scoring works: 700, scaled, and 15 questions that don't count
As of October 2026, 50 of the 65 questions are scored and 15 are unscored. AWS does not identify which questions are unscored, so treat every question as one that counts. The unscored items let AWS assess questions for future use; they are not a section you can spot and skip.
Your result is a scaled score from 100 to 1,000, with 700 required to pass. That is not the same as getting 70% of questions right: scaled scoring allows AWS to compare forms of the exam that may not be equally difficult. AWS also applies no penalty for an incorrect answer, so make your best choice rather than leaving a question unanswered.
Use the 90-minute format as a pacing constraint, not a reason to rush the opening questions. Read whether an item asks for one response or several, eliminate choices that answer a different need, and mark a difficult item for review if it is consuming too much attention. Return with enough time to check that every multiple-response item has the number of selections it asks for.
What's on the exam: the four domains
The official outline gives the four domains unequal weights, which is useful when you are deciding where to spend revision time. Learn the ideas that connect the domains rather than trying to memorise a long service list: responsibility, value, service purpose, pricing, and support recur in different forms.
Cloud Concepts (24%)
Cloud Concepts asks whether you understand why organisations use cloud and how AWS frames cloud adoption. Expect concepts such as trading a fixed capital expense for a variable operating expense, avoiding upfront hardware, and recognising which Well-Architected idea fits a stated outcome. A practice question on cloud economics is a focused check on the cost model behind those choices.
The domain also reaches organisational change, not just technology vocabulary. AWS CAF places people, skills, team structure, and culture in the People perspective, which is distinct from the platform and governance perspectives. Work through a practice question on AWS CAF perspectives to make that boundary concrete before you move on.
Security and Compliance (30%)
Security and Compliance is the domain where broad cloud knowledge must turn into a clear boundary of responsibility. You need to distinguish security of the cloud from security in the cloud, including the customer work involved in configuring security groups and IAM. The question wording often turns on who is responsible for a control, not on a request to configure that control.
Test that distinction with a practice question on the shared responsibility model. For a fuller explanation before returning to the exam outline, use the AWS shared responsibility model guide. Do not reduce the topic to a slogan: work through what the provider operates and what the customer must configure.
Cloud Technology and Services (34%)
Cloud Technology and Services is the largest domain at 34%. Prepare to recognise the purpose of core AWS services and the broad architectural concepts behind a suitable choice, while remembering that implementing or troubleshooting a workload is outside the level this foundational exam is meant to validate. The useful habit is to connect a stated need to the relevant service capability, then rule out choices aimed at a different need.
Well-Architected vocabulary helps you make those distinctions without treating every design goal as the same thing. A practice question on Well-Architected pillars checks whether a review activity belongs with performance efficiency rather than cost optimisation or reliability. Use results like that to revisit the idea behind the choice, not to memorise an answer pattern.
Billing, Pricing, and Support (12%)
Billing, Pricing, and Support has the smallest weight, but it is where several easily confused cost choices appear. Know the purpose of Savings Plans, Reserved Instances, and Spot Instances when a workload's need for flexibility or commitment changes. A practice question on Savings Plans lets you compare those models for a changing workload that runs continuously.
You should also recognise how an organisation can use multiple accounts without losing a joined-up view of billing. Consolidated billing shares volume pricing discounts, Reserved Instance discounts and Savings Plans across accounts; it is not the same mechanism as tags or Intelligent-Tiering. Try a practice question on consolidated billing to separate those ideas before you revise support and cost-management concepts.
The kinds of questions to expect
AWS Cloud Practitioner exam questions are short scenarios and direct knowledge checks rather than a hands-on console task. Multiple-choice items ask for 1 answer from 4; multiple-response items ask for 2 or more answers from 5 or more. Read the requested number of answers first, because a sound choice can still be incomplete when the item expects more than one selection.
Many plausible options name a real AWS concept but solve the wrong problem. Anchor your choice to the clue in the scenario: responsibility, a cloud benefit, an architecture goal, a service purpose, or a pricing and support decision. Avoid material presented as a copy of the live exam; original questions and the reasoning behind them are more useful preparation.
When you review an answer, explain why the other choices do not fit. That approach prepares you for the unscored questions you cannot identify and exposes gaps that a correct guess would hide. It also makes a practice result a study guide rather than a prediction of an exact live score.
A free study plan to pass
Use a 2-4 week free plan if you are starting from the intended foundational level. Start with the official Cloud Practitioner Essentials course, then arrange your notes around the four exam domains instead of around a random list of services. Give extra attention to the larger Technology and Services and Security and Compliance domains while still revising pricing and support.
- Learn the cloud-economics and shared-responsibility language first, then explain it in your own words without looking at notes.
- Work through service-purpose and Well-Architected concepts next, using missed practice items to identify an idea to revisit.
- Leave time for billing, pricing, support, and CAF, because smaller domains still contribute to the result.
- Finish with a timed review in the same 65-question, 90-minute format as of October 2026, then study the reasons behind every uncertain choice.
Start at the CLF-C02 study page and use the complete question list to select an area you have just studied. The site has 130 original questions in 13 tests and a 65-question timed AWS Cloud Practitioner practice exam, so use a domain result to guide the next revision session rather than repeating questions until their wording is familiar.
This plan is deliberately built around free material and practice, not an assumed subscription. If you already work with AWS, you may move more quickly through familiar terminology; if you are new to cloud, leave room to explain the concepts aloud and revisit misses. Do not use an estimated pass percentage as a booking rule, because 700 is a scaled score, not a published percentage of correct answers.
Cloud Practitioner Essentials and the official practice questions
AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials is a free official course of 12 hours and 45 minutes, as of October 2026. It gives a structured foundation for the terminology and concepts in the outline; it is a starting point, not evidence that you have covered every decision an exam scenario can ask you to make. The AWS Cloud Practitioner learning page is the official route to the course.
Follow it with the free Official Practice Question Set, which has 20 questions and takes about 30 minutes. AWS also offers a free 2-hour exam-prep course and Cloud Quest as preparation resources. Those materials are useful checks on official terminology, while original topic practice here helps you repeat a weak concept until you can state the reason for the answer.
Know where the free boundary ends. The 90-minute official pretest and the official full-length practice exam both need a Skill Builder subscription; the broader exam-prep plan is free to follow, but some activities need that subscription. Check the AWS certification preparation page for the current access details before paying for an option.
Booking the exam and exam day
You can book the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam through Pearson VUE for a test-centre appointment or an online proctored appointment. Choose the delivery method that lets you meet the proctoring requirements without distraction, then review the current instructions on the AWS certification testing page. Do not confuse a course enrolment or practice-test result with an exam booking.
As of October 2026, the exam is available in 12 languages, and an ESL candidate can request 30 extra minutes. Confirm your language and accommodation details while booking, not after the appointment starts. Have your identification and your chosen testing setting ready early enough to follow the proctor's check-in process without using exam time.
On the day, use the question type and domain clues to stay organised. Answer every item because wrong answers carry no penalty, flag the ones that need a second look, and leave time to verify multiple-response selections. Your aim is not to remember a practice screen; it is to make the same kind of reasoned choice under the live format.
If you fail, and what to take next
If you do not pass, AWS requires a 14-day wait before a retake. Return to the score report and the domain concepts behind your uncertain answers, then book only after you have corrected the gap; another attempt carries the full exam fee. Treat the first result as feedback on study priorities, not as a reason to search for memorised live questions.
After earning an AWS certification, you receive a 50% discount voucher for another AWS certification exam, including a recertification exam. The certification remains valid for 3 years, and its renewal routes include the current CLF-C02, an Associate or Professional exam, or Cloud Quest: Recertify. The voucher only lowers the price; passing the exam is what renews the certification.
Cloud Practitioner or AI Practitioner first depends on whether you need broad AWS cloud vocabulary or AI-focused foundational knowledge. The guide to AWS AI Practitioner and Google's Generative AI Leader explains what the AI exam covers, while the guide to choosing an AWS certification maps the broader AWS paths. For the realistic career value and limits of this credential, read what jobs you can get with AWS Cloud Practitioner.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are on the exam?
As of October 2026, the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam has 65 questions to complete in 90 minutes. Of those, 50 are scored and 15 are unscored, and AWS does not tell you which are which. Prepare to answer every item carefully rather than trying to identify a group that does not matter.
What is the passing score?
The passing score is 700 on a scaled range from 100 to 1,000, as of October 2026. It is not a published 70% raw-score requirement, so there is no reliable number of correct answers to target. Because there is no penalty for guessing, select your best answer for every question.
How much does the exam cost in India?
The foundational-exam price AWS lists for India is ₹8,553 as of October 2026, plus applicable tax. AWS accepts INR only through the Pearson Mindhub voucher store. The USD price is USD 100 as of October 2026, so check the official route that applies to the way you are buying the exam.
Is the exam hard?
It is a foundational exam, but it can be difficult if the cloud terms, responsibility boundary, or pricing models are new to you. It does not test hands-on implementation, yet a scenario can still offer several familiar terms that solve different problems. Free official learning and original practice are most useful when you study the reason for each miss.
Can I pass with free material only?
AWS provides free Cloud Practitioner Essentials, a 20-question Official Practice Question Set, a 2-hour exam-prep course, and Cloud Quest. The official pretest and full-length practice exam need a Skill Builder subscription, but they are not prerequisites for taking the exam. Combine the free official material with focused original practice and revise the domain behind each uncertain answer.
Does the certification expire?
Yes. AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner is valid for 3 years from the date you pass. You can renew by passing the current CLF-C02, an Associate or Professional AWS exam, or Cloud Quest: Recertify. Check the current AWS certification policy before you choose a renewal route.